First, the conditions of the mother-to-be Do you plan to have a baby? How can you get pregnant? What are the physical conditions of pregnancy? Let’s get a general idea about this first! When it comes to the conditions for women to get pregnant, the most basic is that the reproductive system should be better prepared, in addition, want to give birth to a healthy and intelligent baby, but also to pay attention to the mother’s health p nutrition p emotional and environmental factors and so on. Only try to all aspects are adjusted to a relatively good state, in order to achieve “everything is ready, only waiting for fertilization”. So, what kind of physiological conditions women can get pregnant? (1) to have good quality raw materials – the normal discharge of the egg egg is the female reproductive cells. Women from puberty after the onset of menstruation, the ovaries began to play the function of ovulation, but at first not very regular, that is, not necessarily every menstrual cycle have ovulation, the quality of the discharged egg is not necessarily good. As the body grows and develops, the function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis is further improved and stabilized, and the function of ovulation becomes normal. As we know, women have two ovaries, one on each side of the uterus. Generally speaking, only one mature egg is released each month, and this is done alternately, with the left ovary ovulating one month and the right ovary ovulating the next. Occasionally, two eggs are ovulated at the same time, and this is the origin of the term “twins” such as “tornado”. Since normal ovulation is regular, when does it occur? Regardless of the length of the menstrual cycle, ovulation occurs approximately 14 days before the next menstrual period. For example, if you have a 30-day menstrual cycle, ovulation is likely to occur around day 16 of your menstrual cycle; if you have a 28-day menstrual cycle, ovulation will occur around day 14. However, nothing is absolute. Under the influence of certain factors, the ovaries may ovulate additionally, that is to say, ovulate another egg at a time other than the ovulation period, and if no contraception is used at this time, there is also a possibility of pregnancy. The egg can generally survive for 24 hours after discharge, during this period, if it can combine with the sperm to form a fertilized egg, it will be declared that the mother-to-be is pregnant; if the search but did not meet the sperm, it will be depressed, and thereafter, even if there is a “Romeo” rushed to the scene, but also can not be “Juliet” to produce a love child. “and Juliet will not be able to produce the fruit of love. (2) There must be a weak sentry post – the thin cervical mucus, through which the cervical canal must pass in order to enter the uterine cavity and then reach the fallopian tubes as the sperm begins its slow journey from the vagina in search of the egg. The glands in the cervical canal produce cervical mucus, which is normally thick and sticky, and acts as a cork to seal the cervical canal, preventing sperm from passing through. During ovulation, however, the mucus becomes bright and thin, as if the barricade has been weakened, so that sperm can take advantage of the opportunity to get into the cervical mucus and swim to the uterine cavity. In addition, if there is cervical erosion or vaginitis and other inflammatory stimulation, cervical mucus is also easy to become sticky, not conducive to the passage of sperm. Therefore, thin cervical mucus is also one of the basic conditions for conception. (3) To have a normal operation of the conveyor belt – smooth fallopian tube The egg is discharged from the ovary to the pelvic cavity 8-10 minutes after the umbrella end of the fallopian tube will be like a finger to grasp the egg in, placed in the wider tubal potbelly. Here the egg waits to be fertilized, or a sperm may already be waiting for it. The fallopian tube is also responsible for safely transporting the fertilized egg to the uterus, and if it fails to do so, resulting in an “ectopic pregnancy”, the embryo will die, or in some cases it will be amputated. Therefore, in order not to dishonor the mission, the fallopian tube should be kept from the umbrella end to the uterine cavity completely open, so that the egg, sperm and fertilized egg can pass through unimpeded; at the same time, it also has to have normal peristalsis to promote the advancement of the fertilized egg. And when the fallopian tube has inflammation or the neighbors in the pelvis are inflamed and spread to it, the fallopian tube will often be adhered or even blocked. Sperm and egg can not meet, the woman will not get pregnant, but in case there is a breakthrough “warrior” to find the egg, but also easy to have an ectopic pregnancy. (4) There should be fertile and safe soil – the endometrium during the secretion period. Little life settles in the uterus, just like a seed planted in the soil. Only a fertile soil can make the seed grow, so what kind of endometrium is considered nutritious? We already know that the lining of the uterus changes from a proliferative phase to a secretory phase, and the turning point is ovulation. After ovulation, the lining of the uterus undergoes a series of changes during the secretory phase and is ready to allow implantation of the embryo when it arrives and will continue to create a favorable environment for the development of the little one, providing it with high quality nutrients. If there is inflammatory damage to the endometrium, or if there is scarring from tuberculosis, the endometrium is like a hilly desert with poor soil, which is not conducive to the implantation of the embryo, and this may lead to miscarriage. In general, as long as the above conditions are met, and there are no other factors affecting conception (such as chromosomal, immune, endocrine and other diseases), the mother-to-be is ready to get pregnant. Second, the conditions of the father-to-be People tend to pay attention only to the role played by women in the conception of a small life, because the entire process from the fertilization of the egg to the birth of a child is completed in the mother’s stomach. However, the role of the father-to-be should not be overlooked. The quality of semen, especially the sperm contained therein, is equally important in the conception of offspring. Sperm are male reproductive cells that look a bit like tadpoles. In males, the testes produce sperm continuously from puberty onwards, followed by further development and maturation in the epididymis where they are stored. During sexual intercourse, sperm enter the vas deferens and seminal vesicle glands and, together with prostate fluid, are expelled from the erect penis through ejaculation. Only if normal sperm is discharged into the vagina of the mother-to-be at the right time (the woman’s ovulation period) will the egg be fertilized. So, how can we know if the father-to-be’s sperm is normal? It’s easy, just do a semen test. Composition of Semen Semen is a grayish or yellowish liquid made up of products of the testes, epididymis, seminal vesicles and prostate, and also contains a small amount of secretions from the urethral glands. Sperm is the component we are most concerned about and is the most important formative component of semen, accounting for about 5 to 10%. The rest of the liquid component is called seminal plasma, which is the medium necessary for the transportation of spermatozoa, of which the seminal vesicle secretion accounts for 60% to 70%, and the prostatic fluid accounts for 20% to 30%. Collection of semen specimen Semen examination first requires the subject to collect his own semen, whether the correct collection of semen specimen can affect the accuracy of the test results. Men should abstain from sex for 3 to 5 days before semen collection, if the time is too short or too long, it will affect the test results. Using masturbation or intercourse in vitro ejaculation, all semen should be collected in a clean container and kept in an environment close to body temperature (e.g., under close-fitting underwear) to be sent to the laboratory for examination as soon as possible. Condoms should not be used because the condoms normally used contain spermicidal substances that can cause sperm to die. Routine semen examination Routine examination is the most important part of semen examination, which generally includes semen color, semen volume, liquefaction time, sperm density, 1-hour survival rate, sperm vitality, percentage of malformed sperm, white blood cell count, and so on. (1) Semen color: the color of normal semen is transparent off-white, if abstinence for a long time, it can be light yellow, yellow or even pink when there is inflammation in the reproductive tract. (2) Semen volume: the general amount of semen per discharge is 2ml to 5ml, but affected by the frequency of semen discharge and the number of times. (3) Semen liquefaction time: semen is gel when it is first discharged from the body, and it will become liquid after 5 to 30 minutes, a process called liquefaction. The liquefaction of semen requires the participation of a series of protein hydrolyzing enzymes. Thick and non-liquefied semen is common in patients with prostate or seminal vesicle diseases. (4) Sperm density: Sperm density refers to the number of spermatozoa contained in each milliliter of semen, and the number of spermatozoa in each milliliter of normal semen is more than 20 million. (5) 1-hour sperm survival rate: the percentage of active spermatozoa should be ≥60% within 1 hour after sperm discharge. (6) Sperm vitality: there are four grades, A, B, C and D, which represent the spermatozoa making fast straight forward movement, slow forward movement, swinging in place and inactivity respectively. Normal spermatozoa viability grade A ≥ 25% or grade A+B ≥ 50%. (7) Percentage of malformed sperm: malformed sperm refers to sperm with abnormal morphology, and its percentage should be below 30%. (8) Number of leukocytes in semen: the number of leukocytes in each high magnification field of view should be less than 5 under normal conditions. If it is more than 5, there may be inflammation of the reproductive tract. Bacteriologic examination of semen: When abnormalities are found in routine semen examination, it is better to do another bacteriologic examination of semen. Infections in the male reproductive system, such as the presence of staphylococcus, E. coli, enterococci, mycoplasma, chlamydia and other pathogenic microorganisms, can cause changes in semen quality. Semen biochemistry test: If possible, the content of fructose, zinc, acid phosphatase and carnitine in semen can also be detected. Fructose is mainly secreted by the seminal vesicle glands, providing the energy needed for sperm activity. The absence or reduced content of fructose is seen in congenital seminal vesicle deficiency and seminal vesiculitis, etc. Fructose is not easy to conceive when it is insufficient. The prostate gland contains a high concentration of zinc and acid phosphatase, and the epididymis contains a high concentration of carnitine, which are related to the function of spermatozoa. When inflammation occurs in the prostate gland and the epididymis, the level of these substances will be reduced, thus affecting fertility. If all the above tests are normal, congratulations to the fathers-to-be, who already have the physiological conditions to have a baby!